Loved ones dying without compensation as Crapaud funeral fraud case drags on

Families who say they have lost thousands of dollars for pre-paid funerals are disappointed the fraud case against the man they hold responsible is moving so slowly — especially given that several alleged victims have died without any compensation.

Lowell Oakes, the former funeral director at the now-closed Dawson Funeral Home in Crapaud, has been charged with 66 counts of fraud. They include 36 counts of fraud over $5,000, and 30 counts of fraud under $5,000.

Susan MacKay's mother-in-law Roma, who died a year ago, is one of the people whose pre-paid funeral money seemingly vanished. 

"It's just so hard," MacKay said. "There's no words to describe it, really. You just feel so sad for everybody, for all the victims. It's so wrong that you have to pay for a funeral twice."

Sheila Ross's mother Eleanor died last week. The older woman had paid for a pre-arranged funeral, but she lived with dementia in her final years, and her daughter says they couldn't even get her to say what she wanted for her service by the time the Dawson problems began to emerge. 

"I do hope that the court case is settled soon," Ross said. "This on-going process has been very difficult.

"I would like to see the Prince Edward Island government take some responsibility for the P.E.I. Funeral Home Act and compensate the victims."

Under the P.E.I. Pre-arranged Funeral Services Act, someone who sells a pre-arranged funeral plan must place the funds into a trust account within 30 days of signing an agreement with the client. 

The Ross and MacKay families both said they that didn't happen in their cases, and they lost around $10,000. They said they were lucky they had money to pay for funerals in the absence of a compensation settlement, but worry other Dawson clients will die and leave families without the necessary resources. 

The fraud charges against Oakes have not been proven in court. The case is set to be back before a judge later this week.

However, among the insolvency trustee documents given to creditors was an affidavit in which Oakes was asked the reasons for his financial difficulties. His reply was: "Misappropriated pre-arranged funeral funds."

The cover letter to creditors, written by the accounting firm handling the proposal, said in part: "Oakes has advised us that some funds were used by Dawson to fund its operating expenses; funds were also used to pay for the expenses of a plumbing and heating company that Oakes operated; and some funds were used by Oakes to fund his gambling addiction, a condition for which Oakes advised he is receiving counselling."

Previously, the province has said there will be no comment on the issue because the matter is before the courts. 

Oakes's lawyer has also said he did not want to comment on the case.